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25th Congress. [ SENATE. ] f 25 ] 

2d iS'ession. 



MESSAGE 



TBE PilLSIDKNT OF THE UNITED STATES, 

IN COMPL.!ANCB 

With it resolution of the i^enatc of the \^ih October^ 1837, in relation to 
the adjustment of claims to reservations under the \4.tk article of the 
treaty of 1 830, wllh the Choctaw Indians. 



DECEMBER 19, 1837. 
Head; und ordered to be printed 



^0 ike Senate of the United folates: 

I transmit, herewith, a report and accompanying documents from the 
ecretary of War, wliich contain the information called for by a resolution 
f the 13th of October last. 

Washington, December 18, 1837. 

M. VAN BUREN. 



DKPAIiTMENT OF WaR, 

December 16, 1837. 
Sir '. In reply to the resolution of the Senate of the 13th of October Iast> 
ailing for information in reference to the measures taken under the act of 
larch 3d, 1837, authorizing the appointment of commissioners to adjust 
laims to reservations under the 14th article of the treaty of 1830, with the 
Choctaw tribe of Indians. I have the honor to lay before you a report of 
he Commissioner of Indian Affairs. 

Very respectfully, 

Your most obedient servant, 

J. R, POINSETT. 
To the President 

Of the United States 
Blair & Rives, printers 



War DEPARTRlENTi 

Office of Indian Affairs, December 16, 1831 

Sir: In compliance with your direction of October 16lh, I have the 
honor to submit a report upon the resolution of the Senate oi' the 13th ol 
that month, calling for information respecting the proceedings that have 
taken place under the act of March 3, 1837, providing for the appointment 
of commissioners to adjust claims to reservations of land under the 14tb 
article of the treaty of 1830, with the Choctaw Indians. 

A board of commissioners was constituted by the appointment of ]\Iessrs. 
F. D. Vroom, T. J. Randolph, and Publius R. R. Pray, whose nominations 
were confirmed by the Senate on the 8tli of March last. Commi.ssion.s 
ivere sent to these gentlemen on the 14th of that month. Mr. Randolph 
declined accepting the one offered to him on the 17th, a*nd Mr. James Mur- 
ray was appointed on the 8th of April. Notice of Mr. Vroonfs acceptance 
was received on the 1st, and of Mr. Murray's on the 10th, of April ; of Mr. 
Pray's on the 11th of May. The first instructions to the board bear date 
of the 20th of May. Copies of these instructions, and of subsequent com- 
munications to them, are herewith submitted. It appears from the accom- 
panying copy of a letter from them of the 24th of June." and of the paper 
enclosed in it, that they had assembled at Columbus, Mississippi, and issued 
a notice to claimants that they would enter upon tiic discharge of llie duties 
assigned to them on the 10th of October, and that in the mean time the 
secretary of the board would receive such papers as individuals interested 
might v^ish to present. No general report has been received from them 
uor any further advice of their proceedings, except a letter of the 2Sth 
ultimo, which reached the department on the 12tli instant. I transmit a 
copy of this letter, and of the reply to it, although of date subsequent to the 
resolution of the Senate, under the impression that this coursu will be the 
ixjost agreeable. 

As it will evidently be impracticable for the board to complete the execu- 
tion of the duties confided to them before ihe expiration of the period 
prescribed by the law, I would respectfully suggest, that the propriety and 
expediency of extending that period be submitted to Congress. h\ this 
connexion I beg leave to notice a letter of the 1st instant, just received from 
the commissioners, and of which a copy will be found among the accom- 
panying papers. It suggests several amendments to the law of last session 
which, in their judgment, are important, but most of which, after the con- 
struction given by the department to that law, and the measures taken (or 
carrying it into effect, are, in my view, unnecessary, and the others are not 
desirable. An informal intimation has been received from the same quar- 
ter, that the compensation of the commissioners is inadequate, considering 
the great expenses of travelling, and that mileage should be allowed them 
m addition. 

I append a statepient of the expenses that have been incurred, as required 
by the resolution under this law. 

Very respectliilly, 

Your most obedient servant, 

C. A. HARRIS, 
Commissioner 

Hon. J. R. Poinsett, 

Secretary of War, 



3 i -25 ] 

UST OF PAPERS 

Accompanying , the report of the Cowmis.sioinr of Judian Affairs, of the 
\^Uh Decemhtr, 1837, to the i^ccrelarij of War, respecting the proceed- 
ings that hav^ taken place under the act of March 3t/, 1837, concerning 
claims to rc-nrva/ions under the i'Uh article of the Choctaiv treaty of 
1830. 

1. Letter from the Secretary of War, of the 14th March, 1837. trans- 
niitiiniT comniissioiis to Mesf^rs. Vroom. Raridolph, and Pray. 

2. Letter from the Commi.-sioner of Indian Affairs, of IGth March, 1837, 
to Messrs. Vroom and [laiidolph. 

3. Letter from tlie Comniisjioncr of Indian Affairs, of 1st April, 1837, to 
Hon. P. D. Vroom. 

4. Letter from the Secretary of War, of the Sth April, to James Murray, Esq. 

5. Letter from ihe«Socretary of War, of tt)e 12th of April, to James Mur- 
ray, Esq. -j., 

6. Tjetter from'ffir Secretary of War, of the 12th of April, to Hon. P. D. 
Vroom. 

7. Letter from the Coujmissioner of Indian .\ffairs, of the 20th April, to 
Hon. P. D. Vroom. 

8. Letter from the Coinmissioner of Indian Affairs, of 11th May. to 
MefSTS. Vroom nuW Murray. 

0. Letter h'om the {.ommissiouer of Indian Affairs, of 1 1th May, to Hon. 
P. R. R. Pray. 

10. Instructions from tlie Corn'oissioner of Indian Affiirs, of the 20th 
May, to Messrs. Vroom, Murray, and Pray, with the following papers, viz : 
Schedule of documents accompanyinic instructions • letters to ColoKel Mar- 
tin, of the 26th June, 3d Septemher, and 1 1th October, 1833; opinion of 
the Attorney General, of 9th September and 1st November, 1831, and 27th 
JiHie, 1836 ; extract of a letter of the Sth October, and one of the 23d No- 
vember, 1836, to A. V. Brown. 

1 1. Letter I'rom Messrs. Vroom and Murray of the 23d May, to the Secre- 
tiry of War. 

12. Reply of the Secretary of War. ofllie 25th May, to the preceding 
letter. 

13. Letter from t!ie Commissioners, of the 21ih J\me, and its enclosure. 

14. Letter from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, of the 19th July, lo 
Messrs. Vroom. Murray, and Pray. 

15. Letter from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, of the 18th of Octo- 
ber, to Messrs. Vroom. Murray, and Pray, with a copy of his letter of the 
1 1th of the .same month, to the Secretary of War, and of the endorsement 
made by the latter thereon. 

16. Letter irom the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, of the 10th Novem- 
ber, to Messrs. Vroom, Murray, and Pray. 

17. Letter from Messrs. Vroom and Murray, of the 28th November, to 
the Secretary of War. 

18. Reply of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, of I4th December, to 
the preceding letter. 

19. Letter from Messrs. Vroom and Murray, of the 1st December, to the 
Secretary of War. 

^20. Statement showing thoanaount of expenses incurred. 



r 25 ] 4 

No. 1, 

War Depautment, 

Alarch 14, 1837. 

Sir: 1 have the honor to trantiDit a commission from the President of 
the United States, constituting you a commissioner to adjust claims to re- 
serves of land under the I4th article of the treaty wilh the Choctaw Indians, 
of September 27, 1830. Thomas J. Randolph, Esq., of Virginia, and Pub- 
lius R. R. Pray, Esq., of Mississippi, will receive similar commissions. 
Your compensation will be at the rate of f3;0U() a year, 1 will thank you 
to signify your acceptance or non acceptance of this appointment. In the 
event of your acceptance, instructions for the execution of your duties will 
be forwarded to you by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, 
Very respectfully, &c., 

J. R. POINSETT, 

Hon. Peter D. Vroom, iSomerville, New Jersey. 

[Same (changing names) to Thomas J. Randolph, Esq., Richmond, Vir- 
ginia ; Publius R. R. Pray, Esq., Jackson, Mississippi.] 



No. 2. 

War Department, 
Office of Indian Affairs, March 16, 1837, 

Sir: I have the honor to transmit to you copies of the act of Congress 
of March 3d, 1837, providing for the appointment of commissioners under 
the Choctaw treaty of 1830, and of a report made by the Committee on In- 
dian Affairs on the same subject at the first session of the twenty-fourth 
Congress. They may furnish information respecting the nature of the 
duties confided to you by the conjmission forwarded from this depart- 
ment, which may influence your determination to accept or decline it. If 
you decline it, you will oblige me by returning these papers, as but few 
copies of thera can be procured. 

Very respectfully, &,c., 

C. A. HARRIS, 
Commissioner Indian Affairs. 
Hon. P. D. Vroom, Somerville, Neio Jersey. 

[Same to T. J. Randolph, Esq., now at Richmond, Virginia.] 



No. 3. 



War Department, 
Office of Indian Affairs, April 1, 1837. 

Sir : Your letter to the Secretary of War, of the 28th ultimo, has been 
referred to this office, 

1 have the honor to inform you that instructions will be prepared and 
transmitted to you at an early day. One of the gentlemen associated with 



5 [ 25 ] 

you in the commission, Mr. Randolph, has declined, and another has not 
yet been selected. From Mr. Pray no answer has boon received. 

Very respectfully, dec, 

0. A. MAURIS, 
Commissioner Indian Affairs. 
Hon. P. D. Vroom, 

Somerville, New Jersey. 



No. 4. 



War Department, 

April S,\S37. 

Sir : I have the honor to transmit a commission from the President of 
the United States, consfitiitino^ you a commissioner to adjust claims to re- 
serves of land under the I4t[i article of the treaty with the Choctaw In- 
dians, of September 27, 1830. You will be associated with the Hon. P. 
D. Vroom, of New Jersey, and Piibiius R. R. Pray, Esq., of Mississippi. 
Your compensation will be ,'|3,U00 a year. I will thank you to signify 
your acceptance or non-acceptance of this appointment. In the event of 
your acceptance, instructions for the execution of your duties will be for- 
warded to you by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs. 

Very respectfully, 

Your most obedient servant, 

J. R. POINSETT. 
James Murray, Esq., 

Annapolis, Maryland. 



No. 5. 

War Department, 

April 12, 1837. 

Sir : 1 have had the honor to receive your letter of the 10th instant, ac- 
cepting the commission transmitted to you on the 8th. 

In reply to your inquiry, whether a few weeks can be allowed you for 
preparation, 1 beg leave to refer you to the enclosed extract of a letter of 
Gov. Vroom, one of your colleagues. It will apprise you of his views of 
the manner in which the duties of the commissioners might be executed, 
and whi( h might be acted upon, if a majority concurred in them, and the 
secretary was stationed at some central point to receive papers, as they were 
prepared by claimants. I understand the instructions for the commissioners 
will be completed early in the next week, and I would recommend that you 
correspond with Gov. Vroom, at Somerville, New Jersey, in relation to 
the time and place of meeting. From your other colleague, Mr. Pray, no 
intelligence has been received, or probably will be, in time to influence your 
movements. If, after commnnicating with Gov. Vroom, there shall appear 
to be no reason to believe that any detriment to the public interests would 



[ 25 ] e^ 

be caused by the delay, this department will readily acquiesce in your wish 
to postpone your de])arture for Mississippi for a few weeks. You will please 
to advise me of your determination. 

Very respectfully- &/C., 

J. R. POINSETT. 
James Murray, Esq., 

Annapolis, Maryland. 



No. 6. 



War Department, 

April 12, 1837. 

Sir : I have the honor to inform you that James Murray, Esq., of An 
napolis, Maryland, has been appointed a commissioner in the place of Mr. 
Randolph. 

Mr. Murray has intimated a wisli to be allowed a few weeks for prepa- 
ration, and from the enclosed copy of my reply to him, you will perceive 
that he has been advised to communicate with you, and be governed by the 
arrangements that both of you may determine to be best. I will thank 
you to correspond with him, and to inform me of the conclusiorj yon ar 



rive at. 



Hon. P. D. Vrooi«, 

Sdmerville, New Jersey. 



Very respectfully, (fcc, 

J. R. POINSETT. 



No. 7. 

War Department, 
Office of Indian Affairs, April 20, 1837. 

Str : Since writing you on the 12lh instant, it has occurred to me, that, 
in the course of your correspondence with your colleague, Mr. Murray, 
you may have made some arrangements in relation to the secretary to l.e 
employed by the commissioners. 

If you have, I would sugijest that it might be well for you, with the 
secretary, to pa^s through Washington on your way to the Choctaw coun- 
try, that he may examine the papers relating to the business which has 
been confided to the commissioners, and receive such explanations as muy 
enable him to enter readily upon the discharge of his duties. 

Very respectfully, &.C., 

C. A. HARRIS, 
Commissioner Indian Affairs. 
Hon. P. D. Vroom, 

Somerville, New Jersey. 



[25] 



No. a 



War Department, 
Office of Indian Affairs, May 11, 1837. 

•Sir: I have jUst received advices of Mr. Pray's acceptance of his ap- 
pointment as associate commissioner with Mr. Murray and yourself. I 
have to request that yon will meet tfie latter gentleman in this city on the 
20th instant, when the papers which have heen prepared will be delivered 
to yon, and any verbal explanations given that you may request. The 
second Monday in June has been fixed for the assembling of the commis- 
sioners at Columbus, Mississippi, and Mr. Pray will be instructed to meet 
yon there on that day.. 

Very respectfully, <fcc., 

C, A. HARRIS, 
Commissioner Indian Affairs. 
Hon. P. D. Vroom, 

Somerville, New Jersey. 

[ Same to James Murray, Esq., Annapolis, Maryland, changing the name 
to Governor Vropm, in the second line. ] 



No. 9. 



War Department. 
Office of Indian Affairs, May 11, 1837. 

Sir : Your letter of the 7th ultimo was received this morning, and has 
been referred to this office. 

A commission, correctly made in your name, was sent to Jackson, Mis- 
sissippi, on the 20th of March. 

I have this day notified Governor Vroom and Mr. Murray, (the latter 
appointed in place of Mr. Randolph, who declined,) that the second Mon- 
day in June next had been fixed for the assembling of the commissioners 
at Cohinibus, Mississippi, and requested them to meet at this place on the 
20th instant, to receive the papers that have been prepared for the board, 
and any explanations they might find necessary. You are requested to be 
at Columbus on the day indicated. It is proper for mc to add that the 
comperusation of the commissioners can date only from the day on which 
they take the oath prescribed in the second section of the act under which 
they have been appointed. ^ 

Very respectfully, <fcc., 

C. A. HARRIS, 
Commissioner Indian Affairs. 
P. R. R. Pray, Esq., 

Pearlington. 



No. 10. 



War DKrARTMENT, 

Office of Indian Affairs, May 20, 1837. 
Gkntlemen : Having accepted commissions authorizing you to adjust 
claims to reserves under the treaty with the Choclaws of 1830 you will 



[25 ] 8 

please to conform to these instructions in the execution of the duties pre 
scribed in the act of March 3, 1837, under which you have been appointed^ 
a copy of which 1 enclose. 

The documents described in the accomjjanying- schedule wall enable yoii 
to understand what has been done in the execution of this branch of the 
treaty, and, with one thai Colonel Martin, the locating agent at Chocchnma, 
will be directed to furnish you, showing all the conditional locations made 
by him under the instructions of the 13th of October, 1834, embrace all in 
this office of any importance to you. 

The constructions given to certain clauses in this treaty, the rules and 
principles laid down in the instructions to the locating agents shown by 
the accompanying papers marked G and D, and the clear terms of the law 
under which you have been appointed, render it unnecessary for me to 
enter more fully into this subject. 

You wall please to repair to Columbus by the second Monday in June, 
and there determine the course of proceeding that will insure the most 
prompt and effectual discharge of your duties, adjourning from place to 
place as the nature of the service may re:^uire. 

Notices of your appointment will be given to Colonel Martin, to A. Y. 
Brown, Esq., now acting as a commissioner to certify contracts for the 
sale of Choctaw reserves, to W. Armstrong, Esq., agent for the Choctaws 
west of the Mississippi, and to the registers and receivers, and they will all 
be requested to co-operate with you, and render any services in their 
power. 

I will thank you to notify me of the name of the gentleman selec^ted to 
be the secretary of the board. 

There is no appropriation directly applicable to the object, but, as some- 
thing will be required for contingent expenses, as office rent, expresses, 
fees, stationery, postage, &c., the sum of $500 can be drawn for by you, 
for which you will account by regular voucher.s. Forms of the account 
and voucher are herewith enclosed. 

The documents are so numerous that one copy only can be prepared im 
season, and this has been handed to Governor Vroom and Mr. Murray. 

I respectfully request that you will keep this office apprised of your pro- 
ceedings ; and, particularly, that you will forward a copy of the regulations 
that you may adopt for the government of your pioceedings, <fcc., as soon 
as you have agreed upon them. 

Very resf^ectfully, (fee, 

C. A. HARRIS, 
(Jommisskmer Indian Affairs^. 

Hon. P. D. Vroom, 

Somervillej Nev) Jersey. 

P. R. R. Pray, 

Pearlingto7i, Hancock county^ Mississippi. 

James Murray, 

Jinnapolis, Mar tf land. 



9 L -^] 

Schedule of documents prepared for commissioners under the 14/A article 
of treaty with Choclaws of 1830. 

A. Copy of the treaty of the Choctaws of 1830. 

B. Copy of Armstroiicr's reaisters, exhibiting the names of all the Indians 
owning farms, their locahty, quantity of acres cultivatcU, entire number of 
the family, <fcc. 

Ward's register of the names of those persons who applied for the bene- 
fit of the 14th article of the said treaty, is embraced in the document con- 
taining Armstrong's. See page ISH. 

Indians on Armstrong's list of claims in the different chiefs' districts, are 
properly entitled to the benefits of the 14th article, (although located under 
the 19tli.) if they prove that they made application to \Vard within the 
proper time. But. in that case, the location under the 19th must be con- 
sidered as part of that under the 14th. For further explanation of Ward's 
and Armstrong's registers see paper marked N. 

C. List of persons who have produced to the department Ward's certi- 
ficates of the fact of their having made application within the time re- 
quired by the treaty, but whose names are not on the register forwarded 
by him to the department, but for whom lands have been or will be lo- 
cated. 

D. Instructions to Colonel George W. Martin, of the 26tli of June, 3d of 
September, and 11th of Octob.cr, 1833. 

E. liist of locations under the 14th article which have received the ap- 
proval of the President. 

F. List of locations under the 14th article suspended for further exami- 
nation. 

G. List of locations under the lOih article and the supplement which 
have received the approval of the President. 

H. List of locations under the I9th article and the supplement suspended 
for further examination. These fonr lists are transmitted to show the loca- 
tions which have been made for tlie Indians named on said lists. Those 
names on list F, which are not on Wiird's register, nor on list C, will he 
subject to the investigation of the commissioners. Tho5>e Indians on Ward's 
register who claim to have had more children than is there slated, or the 
ages of whose children are incorrectly reported, must substantiate the fact 
to the satisfaction of the commissioners, who, in that case, will report the 
circumstance. 

I. Copies of the Attorney General's opinions of the 9th of September and 
1st of November, 1831, and 27th of June, I83ti, relative to the construc- 
tion o{ tfie I4th and 19th ar;icles, and tfie evidence necessary to be pro- 
duced by claimants under said 14th article, for the purpose of showing that 
they signified to the agtuit within due time their intention to remain and 
become citizens of the States. 

K. Document No. 138 of the House of Representatives, 23d Congress, 
1st session, containing the messages of the President to that body of the 
6th and I8th of February, 1835, "transmitting a report from the Secretary 
of War, containing the evidence of certain claims to reservations under 
the 14th article of the treaty of 1830 with the Choctaws, which the locat- 
ing agent has reserved from sale, in conlbrniity with instructions from the 
President." 



[25] 10 

L. Copies of evidence relating to the claims, of sundry Indians to reser- 
vations, not embraced in the preceding document, 

M. Copies of instructions to A. V. Brown, of the 8th of October and 23d 
of November, 1836. 

N. Copy of a letter from P. W. Armstrong, of the 16th June, 1835, to the 
Commissioner of Indian Affairs. 

O. Copy of a letter from Samuel Gwin, of the 14th .lune, 1836, to the 
Secretary of War. 

P. Report of Mr. Bell, of the Committee of Indian Affairs, of the House 
of Representatives, May 11, 1836, in relation to claims for reservations un- 
der the 14th article of the Choctaw treaty of 1830. 

C. A. HARRIS, 



Officb of Indian Affairs, 

May 20, 1837. 



Commissioner, 



Department op War, 

/««e26, 1833. 

Sir : You are hereby appointed to make the selections of the locations 
oi the tracts of land granted to the Choctaws by the 14th, 15th, and 19th 
articles of the treaty of September 27th, 1830, concluded at Dancing Rab- 
bit creek. ^ 

■iYour compensation will he five dollars per day, to include services and 
expenses, while engaged in this duty; and you are authorized to employ 
an interpreter, if one attached to the agency cannot be detailed to attend 
you, and to allow him two dollars and a half per day, in full for his ex- 
penses and services. These claims will be paid upon accounts, certified 
by both yourself and the interpreter. 

The department is informed that plats of the surveys of one hundred and 
twelve townships have been received at the General Land Office, and that 
the exterior lines of one hundred and seventy six townships have been run, 
the sectioning of a majority of which is in progress. Copies of the plats 
received here will be forwarded for you from th,^ l^and Office, to the care 
of General Coffee. You will please to apprise the department of your ad- 
dress, that copies of the other plats may be sent to you, direct. 

Upon application to Colonel Ward, or William Armstrong, Esq., at the 
old agency, you will be furnished with copies of registers of" the different 
classes of reservees in the three districts, and may obtain all the information 
you will require in the fulfilment of this duty. These registers are sup- 
posed to be complete, and you will be governed by them in the location 
and assignment of reservations in all cases, unless otherwise directed by 
this department. 

The general provisions of the treaty are, that the reservations shall be 
bounded by sectional or quarter sectional lines of survey, and include the 
improvements of the reservees. An exception to this rule occurs in the 
I5th article, and in the first clause of the 19th, by which two of the four 
sections grated to the three chiefs and to Colonel Folsom, are to be located 
^' on unoccupied unimproved land." You will constilt the wishes of these 
persons in locating these sections, taking care not to interfere with the pos- 



Ui [ 25 J 

sessory rights of any other Indian. The half sections and qnarter sec" 
tions, allowed to heads of families in the 14th article, for iheir children, 
will adjoin the location of the parents. 

The number of reservees provided for in the 3d and 4fh clauses of the 
10th article is limited, and the extent of their reservatiuns is proportioned 
to the number of acres in cultivation. You will learn from the registers 
the names of the persons entitled to land under the several classes. In lo- 
cating three quarter sections granted to those who shall have cultivated 
thirty acres or more, you will observe that the treaty provides they shall be 
"contiguous and adjoining." The reservations allowed under these two 
clauses, are also to be located so as to include that part of the imjjrovements 
which contains the dwelling-hous^. If the contingency should happen, 
contemplated in the jatier part of the fourth clause, that the number of 
reservees sliould exceed the number stipulated for, yon will call upon one 
or more of the chiefs of the district to which they belong, to decide who 
shall be excluded. For instance, one half section is granted to the culti- 
vators of from twenty to thirty acres, the rnnnber not to exceed four hun- 
dred. If there should be four hundred and fifty claimants, the chiefs are 
to decide upon the fifty whose claims must be rejected. 

The 5th clause provides for the assignment to the captains, whose culti- 
vated posses.sions n^ay entitle them under the fjrcvious clauses to le.ss than 
a section, of an additional half section. This half section must adjoin the 
tract which includes their improvements and dwelling-house. The regis- 
ters also will show you the names and number of the orphans entiiled to 
reservations. 

If any of the Choctaws have no improvements, or if the location of a 
tract would include the improvements of more than one of them, in that 
case you nnist exercise a sound discretion respecting the person to whom 
such tract shall be assigned. It is desirable that the parties interested 
should decide for themselves, or agree to submit to the determination of 
their chief. But if they will not do either, perhaps the best method will be 
to draw lots in their presence. It is ali-o desirable that the reservees of 
each district should be located together, and as near to each other as the 
preservation to each of them of his improvements will permit. 

You will establish such permanent marks upon each reservation as 
will show its extent and boundaries. You will albo open a new regis- 
ter and enter upon it the names of the reservees, and the number of the 
sections, half sections, or quarter sections, as marked on the plats of sur- 
vey assigned to ihem respectively; the originals of this register you will 
leave with the sub-awent, William Armstrong, Esq. ; a copy you will for- 
ward to this department. \ 

The department relies upon your zeal and exertions to execute every 
part of your duty under these instructions, in a manner accordant with 
the obligations of the Goverinnent, and satisfactory to the Indians. 

I enclose a copy of the treaty. 

Very respectfully, &.C., 

JOHN ROBB, 
Acting- ISecreiary of Wo-T- 

To Geohck W. Martin, Esq., 

Care of Gen. John Coj'ee, Florence, Alabamo,. 



[25] 



12 



Defahtment of War, 

September 3, 1833. 

Sir: I have received your lettterof the 9th ultimo, suggesting for con- 
sideration and decision several questions connected with the execution of 
your duty in locating the reservations granted by the Choctaw treaty. 
I have submitted the matter to the President, and his views 1 now communi- 
cate to you. 

1st. Where there is more than one occupant upon improvement within 
the same legal subdivision, the rule of preiisrence suggested by you seems 
to be a just one. Let the person whose improvement is the oldest, if that 
ffict can be ascertained, receive the tract, and let the reservations of the 
others be located as near as may be upon such of the adjacent land as 
may be fit for cultivation. But if the fact of the priority of settlement 
cannot be satisfactorily ascertained, then let lots be drawn for the tract 
containing the improvement, and let tlie location of the others be fixed 
as already directed. 

2d. In locating the reservations of children, which are to adjoin the 
tracts of their parents, it is not necessary that the reservations of a parent 
and child should adjoin each other along the whole extent of one of their 
lines. It is sufficient thai they actually adjoin, whether upon the corners 
or the sides. 

3d. Where a dwelling-house, with a portion of the improvement, is in 
one le2al subdivision, and the residue of the improvement in another, 
the tract containing the dwelling-house must be located for the claimant. 
This case is expressly provided for in the treaty, and it is impossible for the 
President to give any other directions. 

4th. Whether the tract upon which the dwelling-house is situated be 
valuable or not, there is no power to assign to the occupant any other 
land. The treaty itself has laid down the rules, and there can be no de- 
parture from it. 

It is to be regretted that Colonel Leflore, or any other Choctaw, has 
taken up impressions that it is competent for the Executive so essentially 
to vary the stipulations of the treaty as would be necessary to make the 
changes in the third and fourth questions you have proposed. The lan- 
guage of the treaty is plain and explicit, and nothing is left for the Execu- 
tive but to carry it into effect. While the President is determined faithfully 
to extend to the Indians all the advantages it promises them, he is deter- 
mined also to adhere to the arrangement which both parties, with a full 
knowledge of the subject, have made. 

5th. All streams which, by the return of the surveyors, make fractional 
sections and subdivisions, will be considered as making fiactions in all 
cases of Indian locations. Where the stream is not of such a size as to 
make fractions for the purposes of sale, it will not make them in the case of 
Indian locations. 

6th. You inquire, what is to be done in those cases where the reservees 
have left the country? I answer, let the locations be made in all cases 
agreeably to the terms of the treaty, and to the return made by Major 
Armstrong, and now in your possession, of the persons entitled to tracts 
of land. 'I'hose persons who decline accepting the land, and claim the 
other benefits secured by the treaty, will have the right of so doino: when 
application is made to them. Some evidence of their relinquishment is 
necessary, and when the location is made, the proper agent will be directed 



13 [25] 

to asceiiaiii the determination cf such, and to provide for thera the land or 
its equivalent. 

7th. 'I'he business of locating the reserves for the orphans has Ijeen com- 
mitted to Mr. Trahern, and it is therefore unnecessary to give you any in- 
structions respecting it. 

By inserting upon each subdivision in the several township maps the 
name of the person to whom it is assigned, and by returning duplicaie lists, 
one to the surveyor <reneral and one to the department, showing the names 
of each person, and by describing the tract by its proper number in its 
township, range, and section, 1 think the several reservations will be 
sutficientlv identified. 

8th. Where a reservation is to include three quarter sections, it is the 
opinion of the President that these three quarters must be in the same sec- 
tion. 

1 see no objection to the suggestion yon make respecting the mode of 
locating claims not fixed by the treaty, where the persons entitled have the 
right cf selection ; and where more than one apply for the same tract, let 
the claim be determined by lot. I observe, however, that there are very 
few of these cases. In general, where the location is not fixed, it does not 
depend upon the clioice of the claimant, but upon your discretion. 

I am aware the subject committed to you is dilficult and important, but I 
rely upon your zeal and exertions to accomplish it in a manner best calcula- 
ted to promote the welfare of the Indians, and the proper interest of the 
Government. Make the locations where you think right. Do not suffer 
yourself to be influenced by the applications or importunities of white per- 
•sons. Tlie Government recognise no sale which has been made, nor will 
they until the locations are completed, and a system adopted and made 
public for protecting the Indians and their conveyances, and of ir.suring to 
them a just consideration for their property. Arrange your business, there- 
fore, with the Indians alone. 

I am apprehensive that there will not be time for you to complete this be- 
fore the arrival of the time fixed for the public sales. In that event, you 
will please to give notice to the proper registers and receivers, and they will 
be instructed to postpone the sale to such a period as you may consider 
necessary. It is to be hoped, however, the districts can be designated, the 
sales of which may go on without interfering with the Indian locations. 

Very, &.C., 

LEWIS CASS. 

To Gf.orge W. Martin, Esq., 

Near Tuscahotna, Washington county. Mississippi. 



Department of War, October 11, 1833. 

Sir: I have received your letters of the 15th and 22d ultimo, together 
with a printed notice enclosed in the former. 

I perceive the embarrassments under which you labor, and am satisfied 
you will proceed in the execution of your duty in the best manner the 
means of information in your power will permit. You doubtless, ere this, 
have received a copy of the register prepared by Major Armstrong. This 
will furnish you with an authentic list of all the claims to which any of the 
Choctaws are entitled; and you will be guided by it, and by the treaty, in 



[ *25 ] 14 

making the locations. I perceive you have selected certain persons to aid 
you ill the receipt of applications. The full efiect you mean to o;iveto these 
applications, I do not understand. I presume, however, it is merely to guide 
you in reserving from sale the proper tracts. You will, under no circum- 
stances, allow a reservaUon to a person whose right is not recognised in 
the register of claims prepared hy Major Armstrong, or by name in the 
treaty. If, however, you should lind that this mode of receiving claims 
would aid you iii the execution ot your duty, you are at liberty to pursue 
it, taking care that a very smr.U compensation is promised to the persons 
employed, as their labor must be comparatively trifling. 

There are three modes of location pointed out by tiie treaty: one is spe- 
cific, depending on the situation of the improvement annexed to it. and will 
require no discretion in fixing it; another is at the option of the reservee, 
and here, of course, you must be guided by his own choice; and a third is 
general, and confided entirely to you. With respect to the latter, you will 
observe that the President desires to fulfil the stipulations of the treaty in a 
spirit of justice and good faith to the Indians, lie neither wishes all the 
valuable tracts to be selected for the Indians which give value to the country, 
nor such ones assigned to them as are unfit for cultivation. Wherever 5'ou 
have a discretion in the location, let the tracts selected be of the average 
quality of the country, and such as are fit for all farming piu'poses, atui 
upon which the Indians can obtain a proper support. Let no white man 
interfere with you in these locations. Receive no representations from any 
one. Any conveyances made by the Indians are, as yet, wholly void ; atid the 
President does not recognise the right of a single person claiming lands in 
the Choctaw country under a deed or conveyance from any Indian. The 
representations of the Indians themselves, you are at liberty to receive, and 
it is proper they should be rec(?ived; but act for yourself, after you have 
procured all necessary information. 

You will consider that clause in your instructions of tiie 26th of June, 
which requires you to establish permanent marks upon each reservation, as 
applicable only to the plans of surveys, and not to the tracts of land them- 
selves. By entering the name of each reservee upon his location, the object 
of that provision will be attained. 

It is important that the Indian reservations sliould be brought as much 
together as possible, and you will not lose sight of this object. If too much 
scattered, the Indians will be exposed to great inconveniences; whereas, by 
living in the same neighborhoods, they can be belter protected in their 
rights and secured from injuries. I^et, therefore, no individual reservations, 
in the location of which you can exercise a discretion, be made apart from 
others. 

By the treatjr, persons entitled to reservations, in consequence of improve- 
ments, are to locate them upon the legal subdivisions which contain their 
dwelling-houses. If two or more persons occupy dwelling-houses upon the 
same tract, let them make an amicable arrangement for preference, if they 
are willing to do so. If this cannot be done, let the tract be assigned to the 
oldest settler, where that fact can be determined: where it cannot, you must 
draw lots for choice. 

I have read your printed notice, and do not see anything objectionable 
in the course you have marked out. Your views will, of course, fce limited 
by these instruction'. 

On inquiry, I find yju had been advised^ by a letter of July 1, 1833, that 



15 [ 25 ] 

U was not in t!ie power of the General Land Office to furnish you witli 
plats in time for the locatiojis, and that you liad been referred to the snr 
veyor general to procure theuK T trust that you have been snpphcd, ere 
ihis, with all the requisite information on the subject. 

I am, sir, respectuilly, 

Your obedient servant, 

LKW, CASt?. 
Col. Georgk VV. Martin. 

Chocchuma, via Rariktn,, Mississipj^i . 



OpFiCK OF' THE Attorney GhNicRAi., 

iSepteinbcr 9 1 ft, lb3l, 

Sin : In obedience to your direction, 1 have examined and considered 
the claim of Mr. Pitchlynn, under the treaty with the Choctaws, as stated 
in his letter of the ISth'of August, 1831. 

The stipulations in the I4th and 19ih articles of the treaty, when con- 
sidered tosfether, are not entirely free from ambiguity, and I have felt some 
difficulty in coming to a salisiitctory conclusion. 

But upon comparing the provisions of the two articles together, and con- 
sidering the general object and scope of the treaty, those two articles appear 
to be intended for ditferent classes of persons. The 14th article provides 
for those who desire to remain and become citizens of the United States, 
and their title is made to depend upon a residence five of years on the land, 
with the intention of becoming citizens. The provision for tlie persons 
named or described in the 19th section is absolute, and is made for those 
who may not desire to remain and become citizens of the United States. 
Their title is not to depend on future residence, or the intention to become 
citizens. 

Any head of a family, if he desires to become a citizen, may avail him- 
self of the provisions of the 14th article. But I think the same person 
cannot take the benefit of the provision made for both classes. If he de- 
termines to remain and become a citizen of the United States, and takes the 
land allotted to persons of that description, he cannot at the same time 
take the benefit of stipulations which were made in his favor on the ground 
that he might not desire to remain and become a citizen. If he elects to take 
under the 14th article, he must relinquish his claim under the 19th. It could 
not have been the intention of the treaty to allow the heads of families men- 
tioned in the 19th article to come in also under the 14th, so as to allow a 
double provision for them. And if Mr. Pitchlynn is allowed to take under 
both articles, the heads of families mentioned in the 19th article must be al- 
lowed the same privilege ; and this, in my opinion was not intended to be 
given to them. 

Mr. Pitchlynn may, therefore, in right of his wife and children, avail 
himself of the provision in the 14th article. But if he does so, he must re- 
linquish what is given in the 19th. lle'may take either, bul^ cannot take 
both. . . 

This constraction of the treaty appears to me to be' warranted by its fan- 



[25] 



16 



guage, and to be also jnst and fair to all parties ; and it is rcspectluily sub- 
milted for your consideration. 

I am, sir, with the highest respect, 

Your obedient servant. 

R. B. TANEY. 
To the President. 



Office of the Attorney General, 

ISovember 1, 1831. 

Sir : In answer to the questions proposed to me in your note of yesterdayj 
and which have grown out of the execution of the Choctaw treaty, of Sep- 
tember, 1830, 1 beg leave respectfully to submit the following opinion. 

i. 1 think the President has the power to approve the sale ot any of the 
reserves made in the supplemental treaty. Although this power is not 
given in express terms by that instrument, yet the whole treaty must be 
construed together as forming but one treaty ; and it would seem from the 
nature and character of the reserves made in the supplemental agreement, 
that it was the intention of the contracting parties to place them on the 
same footing with the like reservations made before. The reserves in ques- 
tion are not made on the condition of remaining and becoming citizens, 
but are absolute, and made in favor of persons who may be expected to re- 
move. The power to sell, therefore, although not expressly given to them, 
must in justice be implied, as the reservations would otherwise be of little 
value to the parties. And if the power to sell is implied, the limitation on 
that power which requires the approval of the sale by the President ought 
to be implied with it, because it was introduced, I presume, for the pro- 
tection of the Indians, and to prevent them from selling their property for 
a trifling and inadequate consideration. 

As regards the mistake in the name, if there had been no precedent on 
the subject, I should have said that proof might be received for the purpose 
of showing that Alexander F. Magagha is the person who was intended 
to be provided for under the description of T. Magagha, in the supple- 
mental treaty, and that the statement of Major Eaton and General Coifee 
would be sufficient to establish the fact, and justify the President in approv- 
ing the sale made by Alexander F. Magagha. But I find that a similar 
mistake in a name occurred in a treaty held with the Potawatomie tribe, in 
September, 1828 ; and upon the discovery of the mistake it was deemed ne- 
cessary to bring the subject before Congress, who passed a law authorizing 
the payment to be made to the person intended. (See act of March 25, 1 83()3 
ch. 46.) Under such circumstances, it is perhaps not proper to depart from 
established precedent, and the error committed in the christian name of Ma= 
gagha had better be left for the correction of Congress. 

2. The President may, in my opinion, approve the sales of reservations 
under the treaty, before they are surveyed, and the boundaries actually as- 
certained. It is, however, a matter in his discretion, and if in his judg- 
ment either the public interest, or the interest of the Choctaw nation, would 
be promoted by refusing to approve of any sale until the land is actually 
laid off to the person entitled, he may unquestionably withhold it until 



n [ 25 I 

»he survey has been made, and the boundaries ascertained, and then ap- 
prove, or refuse to approve, the previous sale, as to him shall seem just. 

3. The lanjiiifia:e of that clause in the treaty which gives the President 
the power to ])ay fifty cents an aero for reservations, would, according to its 
strict and literal interpretation, seem to imply thai the reservations lor the 
chiefs and others named in the treaty were not embraced by this provision. 
But it is manifesdy for the interest of the Choctaws that this power of pur- 
i:hase by the Government should exist, as to all the reservations ; because, 
if (he persons entitled are unable to sell before their removal, and prefer 
accepting the fifty cents per acre rather than wait lor individual purchasers, 
it enables the Government to give them this compensation as soon as they 
arrive at their new abodes, when, for the most part, it would be very con- 
venient for them to receive it. 

In an instrument of this .sort, and made with such persons as the Choc- 
laws, T do not think that strict and technical rules of construction should 
be applied to it. It ought to be expounded liberally, according to its spirit, 
so as to give the Indians all the advantages and facilities in their removal 
which appears to have been contemplated by the general scope and spirit 
of the treaty. And this rule of construction is sanctioned by the clause at 
the end of the 8th article, which stipulates that whenever well founded 
doubts shall arise, they shall be construed most favorably towards the Choc- 
taws. And regarding the subject in this light, and looking to the objects 
of the treaty, 1 think that according to a fair and liberal interpretation of 
its terms and provisions, the President has the power to accept from any of 
the chiefs named, a relinquishment of his title, and to direct him to be paid 
fifty cents per acre for it. 

I am, sir. 

With the highest respect. 

Your obedient servant, 

R B. TANEY 

To the Presi dent- 



Attorney General's Office, 

Jtine 27 til, 1836. 

Sir : In answer to the question pre.sented in the statement of Mr. Lyon, 
enclosed in your letter of the 23d instant, I have the honor to state, that as 
no particular evidence is required by the treaty itself, nor by any act of Con- 
gress, to be produced by persons claiming the benefit of the 14th article of 
the Choctaw treaty, for the purpose of showing that they actually signified 
to the agent, within due time, their intention to remain and become citizens 
of the States, I think the department at liberty to receive, and that it ouo-ht 
to receive, any credible evidence, documentary or oral, coining from any 
disinterested source, which may tend to establish that fiict ; and that all 
Choctaw heads of families who shall prove by any such evidence that they 
actually and in good faith signified to the proper agent, in due time, their 
intention to remain, and who have resided the proper time on the land, are 
2 



[ 25 ] 1 3 

entitled to the reservations secured by the treuJy, notwithstanding iho.ir 
names may not have boen taken by the aireiit on his list. 
I atn, sir, 

Very respectfully, 

Youv obedient iiervant, 

B. F, BUTf.SE. 
The Hon. LEwrs Cahs, 

Secretary/ of War. 

Mr. Lyon's letter is returned. 



Extract of a Idler from the Commissioner of Indian Afair.f, to A. f . 
Brown, Esq., dated October Stk. 1S36. 

<■ Reserving for the further action of the deparlnient the cases included 
in the statements of the General Land Office, and those in whicii sales 
have been made, you can proceed to certify contracts ibr the others thaf 
have been approved. The principles and rules b^' which you will be regu- 
lated in the discharge of this duty are clearly stated in the letter of this 
departnieni to the President, marked K, and tlie accompanying mcmoran 
dum. As Col. Vose, the commanding officer at Fort Towson, and Mr. 
William Armshong, the acting superintendent of the Western Territory, 
have advised this office that sales had been made in tlieir respective neigh- 
borhoods, 1 would recommend that you give early notice, through the latier. 
of your appointment, and of the times and places when you will act upon 
the conveyances held by persons there. I shall send copies of this letter, 
and of papers E, to Mr. Armstrong, that he may understand the general 
principles upon which you will act, and be able to give proper information 
to the parties interested. It has also been represeuted that Indians who 
have sold their rights prior to emigratinor, had sold them a second time sub- 
sequent thereto. ^ Some contracts, admiuod by the holders to be of this 
character, have been presented here. It is uU-^^ed by some of tiie Indians 
that they have never been paid, or have been paid only in part, the amount 
of tlie consideration stipulated in the first contract. In all these cases you. 
will institute a rigid scrutiny to ascertain the facts, and you will certify no 
contract not clearly within the rules laid dovrn in paper E. 

" The manner in which you shall execute the duties must be determined 
by younself. But I would suggest for your consideration the expediency 
of making a preliminary inquiry, in the first instance, at each place where 
you appoint a meeting, and that you open a register or docket, entering up- 
on it the names of the Indians and of the purchasers, and a brief of tlm 
circumstances presented in evidence. This record being left open for gen- 
eral inspection, while you proceed to another place, it will be more proba- 
ble that.; Vi]yon your return, and at the final hearing, the tnie history of each 
, case will be developed.'' 



War DpjpartmenTj 
Office Indian Affairs, November 23, 1836. 

Sir •, I have received youi: letter of the 1st instant. I presume that you 



19 [ 25 J 

have communicated with Colonel Martin and Mr. Grayson, and ascertained 
whether the latter can act as your secretary. 

The preparntion of the ii)struclioiis in relation to the proof of residence, 
required in the Mth article of ihe treaty with the Choctaws of I80O, has 
been delayed to obtain the opinion of the present Secretary of War upon 
the subject. He thinks that only a general direction can he given, viz : 
that the proof the intention of the rcservees to remain upon the lands located 
for them must be of a character to satisfy your own mind, and that it must 
be given by credible witnesses, in the form of airidavits. 

You will receive with this a copy of the register of reservees under the 
Mth article of the treaty, transmitted by Colonel Ward to this office, which 
has been adopted by tlie President, as conclusive upon the action of the 
Executive. If other claimants present themselves, or if any persons upon 
it claim a greater quantity of land than it shows him to be entitled to. they 
must be relierred to Congress for relief. 

You will observe the numbers on this register, and let every paper 
exhibited to you bear the number of the particular case to which it relates. 
The register to I^e j rcpued by you will show the name of each reservee, 
having- tlie number on Ward's register attached to it. the names of the 
witnesses, the substance of their deposit ion.s, your action upon it, with the 
reasons upon which you based it. This register you will forward to this 
office. 

I transmit copies of two opinions of the Attorney (General, given in 1831, 
of the existence of which this office was not until recently aware. From 
the proximity of the dates to the date of tlu^ letter of the Commissioner 
of die General liand Office, reterred 10 in the memorandum forwarded to 
you with your instructions, it is to be presumed they formed the basis of 
that letter. But no letter of the President to the Attorney General or to 
the Commissioner of the General l-and Office can be found. Both of them 
may have some bearing upon the business that has been confided to you. 

Very respectfully, 

Your most obedient servant, 

C. .\. HARRIS, Co7irmi}t.<iioner. 

A. Y. Brown, Esq.. 

Coluvibns, Mii^sissipjn. 



No. 11. 

Washington, Afay 23, 1837. 

Sir; Being now on our way to the State of Mississippi, as commi.s- 
sioners, under the act of Congress entitled "An act for the appointment 
of commissioners to adjust the claims to reservations of land under the 
14th article of the treaty of 1830, with the Choctaw Indians," we beg leave 
respectfully to inquire at what time it will be considered by the department 
that our salaries commence — whether from the acceptance of the appoint- 
ment, the time of leaving home, or the time of organizing at Columbus? 

We would state to the department that, from the period of our accepting 
the appointment, we have iound it necessary to abandon altogether the 
business in which we were engaged, and have been sedulously employed 
in making arrangements for a long journey, and an unexpected absence 



[ 05 ] 20 

from home; that we h^ave oonsidered ourselves as the servants of the Gov- 
evnirieiit, and held ourselves in roadiness to execute its orders as soon as 
rec<:'ivtd ; and that v/e left home imraediately on being informed that our 
in?;!rnction>i were prepared. There has been no delay on our part; and, 
under these circum^itances, it appears to us but just that our compensation 
should commence from the time of acceptance, and not later. 

We embrace this opportunity to inquire of the department whether the 
Board of Commissioners will be at liberty to call on the marshal of the 
United States, in tlie district of Mississippi, for stich aid as they may require 
of an executive officer? The act states that the commissioners "shall 
have full power to summon, and cause to come before them, such witnesses 
as they may deem necessary, and liave them, examined on oath,"' (fcc. To 
carry out the intention of the law, and do justice to the Government, it is 
evident that the services of some officer will be required. Unwilling 
witnesses will pay but little attention to a process served by one having no 
legal authority. Can the board appoint an officer, and clothe him with 
power? we doubt the right to do so. Can they rely with safety upon the 
State officers^ such as sheriffs, or constables? Would even these have 
legal right under our authority to execute compulsory process, protect 
witnesses, and preser\'e the dignity of the board by promptly enforcing 
their orders? If not, the board might find themselves in a very unpleasant 
situation, if not entirely powerless. 

It will be necessary, in all probability, to have an interpreter. There is 
no provision in the act for stich officer. Will the board be authorized to 
procure one, if occasion shall require, and compensate him out of the con- 
tingent fund placed at their disposal ? If not, what other course may they 
with propriety adopt ? 

The commissioners who are now here propose to proceed to the place 
designated in their instructions, and after organizing, to digest and adopt 
a plan of operations, and cause full notice of it to be given to claimants 
and all others interested, so that they may be prepared to meet the board 
and present their claims and proofs at certain times and places to be speci- 
fied in the notice. This being done, the commissioners think it would be 
advisable to retire temporarily from the State, and resume their labors as 
early in the autumn as the term of notice they may deem necessary will 
allow. It is their impression that such coiu'se would best protect the inter- 
ests of the Government, and promote the just rights of all parties. If they 
could be advised that the course, as proposed, meets the approbation of the 
department, they would feel sensibly relieved. 

With the highest respect, 
We are, sir, 

Your obedient servants, 

P. D. VROOM, 



Hon. J. R. Poinsett. 



J. MURRAY. 



No. 12. 



War Department, 

May25t/i, 1837. 

Gtentlemen : I have had the honor to receive your letter of the 23d inst. 
The plan of operations proposed by you is approved; you will be allowed 



1^1 [ 25 ] 

to employ an interpreter at a reasonable compensotif»?), to be paid out of the 
contiiijjreiit fund under your control ; and your salaries will coairaence at 
the date of the accepiance of youraj^pointniotits. 

In reference lo your inquiry whether you will be at liberty to Gallon the 
marshal of the United States in the district of Mississippi for such aid as 
you may require of an executive officer, it is the opinion of this depart- 
ment that you -are autliorized to require the services of the olficers of 
the United States, and, through the district attorney, those of the marshal 
named to aid you in affecting the object of your appointment, and io 
executing the law under which you act. 

It is by law made the duty of the marshal to execute all lawful precepts 
directed to him, and issued under the authority of the United States. 
The act creatinsf the commission which you compose, empowers tlie 
commissioners to " summon witnesses and cause them :o come," which, 
in the view of the department, gives the same force as that possessed 
by a court to summon, and if the witness should not appear, to cause him 
to come by compulsory process issued to the marshal through the dis- 
trict attorney. Such a process is a lawful precept, and one which the mar- 
shal is equally bound to execute. 

Very respectfully, &c., 

J. R. POINSETT. 

P. D. Vroom and James Murray, Esqs., 

Commissioners, (^'c, IVashington City. 



No. 13. 

Columbus, Mississippi, 

June 2Xth, 1837. 

Sill : We have the honor to inform you that we organized and opened 
our oifice at this place on the 22d, and on the same day appomted .i^Ir. 
Jonathan Pinkn^-y, of Maryland, secretary to the board. 

After consultation we have come to the conclusion that it would not be 
expedient to proceed in the hearing of claims before the 16th October next, 
and have agreed upon tfie enclosed notice to be published in the newspa- 
pers of the county. 

Wo have the houvir to he, respectfully, 

Your obedient servants, 

P. RIITILIUS R. PRAY, 
J. MURRAY, 
P. D. VROOM 
Hon. J. R. PoiNSiiTT. 

(Notice enclosed.) 

The commissioners appointed to adjust clnims to reservations of land 
under the fourteenth article of the treaty of 1830. with the Choctaw It?- 
dians, hereby give notice that they will meet at their office in the town of 
Columbus, in Mississippi, on the 16th day of October next. 

Their office will continue open frnm this time, ;\nd their secretary will 
receive any applications or claims which claimants may think proper to 



[ 25 ] 2'2 

make or file. Cases will he docketed in the order presented, and taken up 
in the same order, if ready. 

Chiimants will, if required, be heard by counsel. 

Sumaions for witnesses will be issued by the secnstary, upon application 
lo him. 

Claimants and their children, entitled to reservations, must in all care^ ap- 
pear before the commissioners in person. 

The district attorney of the Uwited States for the State of Mississippi will 
act as counsel for the Utiited States. 

For the information of claimants, the 14th article of the treaty of Dancing 
Rabbit creek, and the 1st, 6(h, and 7th sections of the act of March 3d, 
1837, under which the commissioners are acting, are published with tliis 
notice, 

P. RCTILIUS R. PRAY, 
J. MURRAY, 
P. D. VKOOM. 



No. 14. 



War Department, 
O^ce of Indian Affair.f, Jidy 19, 1837. 

Gentlemf.n : I have the honor to aknowledge the receipt of your letter 
of the 24th ultimo, with the copy of your notice to claimants under the 
Ciioctaw treaty of 1830. 

Very respectfully, &,c. 

C. A. HARRIS, 
Commissioner of Indian Affairs. 
Messrs. P. R. R. Pray, 
J. Murray, 
P. D. Vroom, 

Columbus, Mississippi. 



No. 15. 



War Departmkkt, 
OJice of Indian Affairs, October 18, 1837. 

Gkntlemen : 1 have the honor to enclose a copy of a letter addressed 
by this office to the Secretary of War, on the 11th instant, from tlie endorse- 
ment on wiiich you will perceive that it WHSSubraitt<!d by him to the Presi- 
dent, and his direction obtained upon the subjects therein presented. Under 
this direction it becomes my duty to state the views of the department re- 
specting the execution of the duties confided to you, upon some points not 
noticed in the letter from this office of the 20th of May. 

The President having expressed the opinion that it was coaipetent for 
him to designate other places tfian Columbus for your meetings, with the 
single restriction that they be within the State of Mississippi, 1 have to 
request that you will direct your inquiries to ascertain the places at which 



23 [ 25 ] 

your sessions will accommodate the greatest number of claimants, and afford 
(o yourselves the best facilities for prosecuting your investigations. Gen- 
tlemen well acquainted with that section of the country and the condition 
.)f the claimants have concurred in naming Jasper county as one of the 
most conv^enient points. But it may be necessary for you to assemble in 
I'uch of the Indian towns. It seems to be an obvious duty of the Government 
to cause the act of Congress which was designed for the benefit of the reser- 
vees, to be executed in the manner least expensive and burdensome to them. 
'^Fiiey o;^ght not, if it can be avoided by changing the place of your session, 
to be obliged to transport themselves, their children, and witnesses beyond 
a short distance. It fias been represented that there are some claimants in 
Alabama, and you will please, therefore, select some place as near the line 
of that State as practicable, for their accommodation. It is not intended to 
restrict you by naming particular points, l)ut, having presented the consid- 
erations which, in the judgment of the department, should be borne in 
mind, and influence your proceedings, to commit the matter to your dis- 
cretion. 

The papers heretofore sent to you contain so full information respecting 
vv'liat has been done, and the principles that have regulated past action, 
that it is unnecessary for me to add but a single remark, and that in antici- 
[)ation of a dilliculty that recently presented itself to commissioners acting 
iiiider similar circumstances. In the event of the absence, or indisposition, 
^)r (Jisaifreement in opinion, of one your number, the department entertains 
no doubt of the competency of a majority of the board to execute the trusts 
confided to it. 

I enclose a copy of a reL'olution of the Senate, and would urge you to 
iAse every exertion to satisfy the solicitude it indicates, that your duties shall 
f>- finally executed the present season. 

In addition to the amount already placed at your disposal for contingent 
exp:;nses. tlio sum of $1.C00 has been given to Gov. Vroom. 
Very respectfully, <fcc., 

C. A. HARRIS, 
Comm'tssioner Indian affairs. 

lion. P. D. Vroom, J.imks Murray, 

iUid P. R. K. Pray, Esqs., CoUmbiis, Mississippi. 



War Department, 
Office of Indian Affairs, October 11, 1837. 
Sir: The commissioners appointed to adjust claims to reserves under 
{he fourteenth article of the GluK'taw treaty of ]8'30, by virtue of the pro- 
visions of the act of Congress of March 3, 1837, have fixed the sixteenth ol 
tiie present month as the day on which they will meet for the performance 
of tiieir duties. It is understood from Mr. Murray, wlio is now in this city, 
that the commissioners are of the opinion that Columbus having been 
designated m their original instructions as the place of meeting, they can- 
not assemble at any other place ; and that the authority given to the Presi- 
dent in the act of (Congress to fix the place having been exercised, it is not 
competent for him to give any further direction. Many representations 
fiave been received at this office of the absolute necessity, so far as thq 
riglits of tiaanants and the proper discharge of the duties of the Govern- 



t 25 ] 24 

tnent are concerned, of the commissioners meetmg at various points of the 
Choctaw country. As they entertain the opinion above stated, which does 
not coincide with the views entertained by this office, it is desirable the 
matter should be submitted to the President, and his opinion obiaincd as 
to the extent to which the action of the commissioners may be regulated 
by the instructions of this department. 

Very respectfuily. &:-c.. 

G. A. HARRIS, 
Oommijisioner Indian Aff'airs. 
Hon. J. R. Poinsett, 

Secretary of War 

Copy of the endorsement made by the iSecrelary of War, 

Having submitted this question to the President, he instructs me to say 
that he regards the rio^ht to remain in him to change the place of meeting 
of the commissioners whenever and to whatever spot he may deem expedi- 
ent, provided the place designated is within the State of Blississippi, and to 
prescribe such regulations as he may think proper for carrying into eifect 
each and all of the provisions of the act of Congress of the 3d of March, 
1837, under which the commissioners were appointed. 

J. R„ P. 



No. !6„ 



War Department, 
Ofiec of Indian Affairs, November 10, 1837. 

Gentlemen : In order that your respective accounts, as well as that of 
your secretary, may be relieved from the charges made against you on the 
books of the Second Auditor for the several payments heretofore made upon 
drafts drawn upon this office, it becomes necessary that you make up ac- 
counts according to the forms presented to Mr. Murray last spring, and 
transmit them to this office. I would suggest that the first account of each 
of you be made up to the 3f/th of September last, and in future at the end 
of each quarter, always giving credit for the sums received by you on 
account. 

This course is rendered necessary in consequtnce of the appropriation 
being indefinite ; and without the early rendition of accounts, the money 
already advanced cannot be refunded to the appropriation fund whence 
they have been borrowed. 

Very respectfoliy. tfcc, 

C. A. HARRIS, 
Commissioner Indian AJfains. 
Messrs. Vroom. Murray, and Pray, 

Gommissioners. ^c, Cohfmbus, Mississippi. 



25 [ 25 ] 

No. 17. 

Columbus, Missisau'i'i, November 28, 1837. 

Sir : We have the honor to inform you that the commissioners appoint- 
ed under the fourteenth article of ths (.'hootaw treaty arrived at tliis phice 
at the dates following:, tIz : General Pray on or aliout the 28th of October, 
and the undersigned on or about the 5th and 12th instant. Various un- 
foreseen occurrences, such as personal indisposition and the low state of 
the water, prevented our attendance at an earlier period. On the 6th 
instant, a majority of the commissioners bt;i!isr present, the board was 
(^rsfunized for the trans:iction of business, and there being nothing to occupy 
its'attemion, it was adjourned from day to day until the 9th, when General 
Pray, having been voted tor at the general election in this Slate, for judge 
of the court of appeals, and believing that he had been elected, left this 
place lor Jackson, ititending to return if not elected ; but otherwise to 
resign his commission as a m.ember of the board immediately. The board 
was iuvthcr adjourncjd until the I3th instant, when the renjaining member 
having arrived, ir was again organized for business. Sundry persoris, 
alleging themselves to be representatives of some of the Indian claimants, 
appeared before the board for the purpose of being heard in reference to 
the mi)si prOj-er and convenient place or places at whicii the board should 
liold its se.ssioMS. The hearing was deferred until the arrival of the attor- 
ney of the I'uiu^d States, who" was daily expected. He had been in atten- 
dance here in October, at the request of the board, but left in consequence 
of the uon attendance of the commissioners at the time appointed. On 
the 22d, the attorney of the United States arrived, and since that time the 
board has been engnged in making arrangements for the procurement of 
proper uitcrpreters, and in hearing the statements of parties interested as to 
the propriety of removing from this town, and as to the most eligible places 
tor meetino- in the ('hoetaw country within the bounds of this State, and 
aliio in attending to various other preliminary matters. After hearing the 
allegntions of the claim.ants. or those who represent them, and also of the 
attorney of the United States, we have concluded to change the location 
of the board, and hold its sessions at different points within the hmits ot 
the Choctaw countrv, more desirable, and probably more convenient to the 
Indian claimants. The foilov\'ing places have been selected viz : B. i-e- 
lioreAs, in the county of Leake ; Garlandsville, in the county of Jasper ; 
and MarslialTs, in the county of Kemper. This arrangement, it is hoped 
and believed, will be satisfactory to a very large number, if not the whole 
of the claimants. 

At this stage of the business, notice was received of the election and 
resignation of General Pray, one of the commissioners : and the serious 
question was presented to those who remained, whether they could legally 
proceed to execute the responsible tru.st confided to the commissioners 
under the act ; and, at^ter mature deliberation, they came to the conclusion 
that they had no pov/er to proceed until the vacancy should fc fdled. 
They were oi' opinion, on general principles, that, where a trust, even of a 
public nature, is confided to three persons, the whole number must be ap- 
pointed and be in existence, to authorize two to act. In the law under 
which they were appointed, they saw nothing to alter this principle or to 
lead to a diiferent conclusion. The act provides for the appointment of 
three commissioner.'', who arc authorized to perform certain si^ecific duties. 



[ 25 ] 26 

It gives no power to a majoniy. Such power could be taken only by 
inference, even were all the members of the commission in existence. But 
there is nothino^, we apprehend, to warrant the assumption of it by two, 
when the board is not full. If two only had been appointed, they could 
not legally have organized, or done any act under their commission. Their 
investigation and report would not have been a compliance with the act. 
When, by death or resignation, the number is reduced to two, we are of 
opinion that, if the board can be considered as having any legal existence, 
the power to act is suspended until the vacancy be filled. 

Such are our conclusions, drawn from getK.-ral principles and tVoni the 
act under which we have been appointed. 

These conclusions are fortified, as we conceive, l;y the construction of 
ttie department given to the same act. In a comtnunieation to the board, 
under date of October 18. 1837. it is stated as the opinion of the depart- 
ment, that, in case of the absence, indisposition, or disagreement of any 
one of rhe commissioners, a majority may proceed. This is evidently 
founded on the supposition that the whole number is m existence. The 
resignation of one of the commissioners does not, in our judgment, consti- 
tute an absence, within the meaning of the department ; nor would the 
act of two, under such circumstances, be the act of a majority, it would 
afipear to us that tlie construction of the department was intended to apply 
only to cases where, the board being full, one tnighi casually be absent, or, 
being present, might differ in opinion from the other two. In either case 
a majority may act. The fact that the case which has occurred is not 
within the limit of the construction th.us given, is persuasive evidence of 
the opinion of the department that it liad no authority, in such event, to 
instruct two commissioners to proceed before the vacancy was filled. 

It may be proper to add that, in the judgment we have formed, we are 
sustained by the concurrent opinion of the attorney of the United States. 

In cnnsequence of this unforeseen difliculty, we have adjourned all further 
proceedings until the first Monday in January ; at winch (nne, the board 
will meet at B. liaflore's, in Leake county. It is supposed th;it, by that time, 
the person to be appointed in the place of Gen. Pray may be able to join us. 

Very little delay will be occasioned by the course we have felt constrained 
to adopt. The adjournment of the board from this place, for the greater 
convenience of the claimants, in conformity with recent instructions Jiom 
the department, necessarily requires a reasonable notice to be given of the 
time and place of future meeting. The additional time that must elapse 
before the arrival of a third commissioner will not probably exceed two or 
three weeks: and, although we greatly reo^ret even this delay, we are satis- 
fied it is of small moment when viewed in connection with the immense 
arnouni of property claimed, and the importance of having the proceeding.s 
of the board above all exception or dispute; so that, when reviewed bv 
Congress, as they must be, or by couits of justice, as may be the case, in 
prosecutions for perjury, no part of them may be found to be cot'ofn uon 
judlcc, or in any way irregular. 

We have the honor to be, 

With great respect, 

Your obedient servants, 

P. 13. VROOM, 
. J. MURRAY, 

Co'trimissioners. 



27 [ *25 ] 

No. 18. 

War DkpartmknT; 
O^i-e Indiayi Affairs, December 14, 1837. 

GRNTLTiAtKN : I liavp (h(i honor to nokiiowlodge the receipt of your letter, 
of the 28th ultimo, to the Secretary of War. Heluis considered, attentively, 
the reasons yon h.ivo assigned foi' adjourning to the first Monday in Janu- 
ary next, withont being able to assent to their force; on the contriiry, he is 
clear in tlie opinion that it is not only competent but proper for you to 
piroceed in the execution of your duties as commissioners. He has directed 
me to communicate his views to 3''ou, and to instruct you to resinne, and 
(;ontinue in the discharge of the functions assigned to you, notwithstanding 
the vacancy that has occurred in the board, and although it may not be 
filled. You will find^ m the shortness of the unexpired term of your com- 
missions, an urgent reason for great assiduity and diligence on your part, 
to comply with the requisitions of the law under which yon are acting. 

Very respectfully, 

Your roost obedient servant, 

C. A. HARRIS, Com'r. 

lion. P. D. Vroom and 

J«MES Murray. Esq. 



No. 19. 



COLliMHUS, MlSSISSlPFF, 

Decb7nber l.v/, 1837. 

Sia : We have the honor to submit to you our views in relation to some 
amendments which we think it necessary should be made in the law of the 
la--it session of Congress, establishing our commission, which we think, if 
adopted by Congress, will enable the commi.ssioners more prornptly and 
efficiently to perform the duty assigned to them. 

1st. An amendment authorizing two of the bo;ird to act, in case of the 
d -ath, resiirnation, or ah.sence of one of the commissioners. 

2d. x4 uthorily to the board, or a majority of the commissionei s, to adjourn 
tlieir sessions to such place or places as in i heir judgn)ent the interest of 
the Government or claimants may require. 

3d. Authority to the board, or a majority, ti> adjourn to such place, be- 
yond the State of Mississippi, a? they may think proper, to make up their 
viport, after they shall have taken all the testimony. 

4th. To give the board the poweis of a court of record, to pres.^rve or- 
d-:i', puni.sli voniempts, tfe.c. 

5th. Authority to any member of the board, or th«^ district attorney, to 
administer oatlis to witnesses, in any matter before tlie board. 

(ith. Authority to employ one or more interpreters, and an ageiU or agents 
to collect testimony for the United States. 

In relation to the first aniondmenf proposed, we do not think it necessary 
to add an]'^ tiling to the communication addressed to you by the last mail. 

In relation to the second, we have only to observe, that it is apparent to 
us that the commissioners can better judge of the advantoges of particular 
places for the hearing of these cases, than tlie Commissioner of Indian Af- 
i';tirs, at so great a di.stance. 



[ 25 ] 38 

With regard to the third, we think that the opinion of ihe board, after 
all the testimony shall have been taken, will as well be made up at one 
place as another, and that it would be a j^reat accommodation to the under- 
signed to be permitted to devote the time necessary for this purpose, nearer 
to their homes and business, as by the shortest possible time in wliich they 
can ^et through the testimony, they will have been a long lime absent ; it 
may also be necessary to consult papers and maps only to be found at this 
seat of Government. 

The fourth amendment, giving power to the commissioners to preser\<! 
order, we think very necessary, as Ihe questions litigated before the board 
will many of them be exciting in their character, and may lead to great 
confusion and interruptions, unless the conmiissioners should have clear 
power promptly to preserve peace and decorum. 

The fifth, to give authority to any one of the commissioners, or lo thv? 
district attorney, to admmister ail oath, we do not now think to be clearly 
given by the statute to flie board of commissioners, as such. The expres- 
sions in the law you will observe are, "That the commissioners shall hav.- 
full power to summon and cause to come licfore them such witnesses a-< 
they may deem neces^sary, and to have them examined upon oath." ¥ov 
what reason the power lo administer an oath could have been denied t.) 
the commissioners, we are at a loss to detertnine, nor do we think such u cis 
the intention of the framers of the law. It is not clear, however, that the 
power is given, and as prosecutions for perjury are con[em[>lated by Ihe 
law for false swearing, it would be well that the law on the subject should 
admit of but one interpretation. 

The authority to employ interpreters, and an agent to collect testimony 
for the United Slates, is probably incident to the board from the peculiar 
character of the subjects of investigation committed to tliern. It would be 
proper, however, \n the opinion of the commissioners, that it should be ex- 
pressed clearly, to prevent difficulty with the accounting officers of the 
Treasury. 

No contingent fund was provided by the lav/ of last session. The un- 
dersigned aie at a loss to say what ap[)ropriation will be necessary to cover 
contingent expenses, but think that a less sum than five thousai id doUais 
will not be sufficient. The expense of employing agents, and indeed ex- 
penses of all kinds in this country are very great. We understand that in- 
terpreters cannot be employed at a less expense than six to eight dollars 
per day. 

The magnitude of the claims, however, which will come before us, are 
such as to render expenses of this kind as of no comparative moment. 

An early action of Congress upon these subjects, we think of great im- 
portance. 

W^ have tlie honor to be, 

Very respectfully. &c., 

J. MURRAY, 



P. D. VROOM.. 



Ion, J. R. Poinsett, 

Secretory of War.. 



RD 1.48/?^ 



29 [ 25 ] 

1^0 20. 

STATEMENT i;hQwi)i^ the amount of expenses incurred under the 
act approved '^i March, IS37, entitled '* An act for the appointnievt of 
commissioners to adjust the claims to restrvniions of land under the 
lith article of the treaty of 1830, with the Choctaw Indians.^^ 

Due to 1\ D, Vioom, for his services as commissioner, from 

the 28tli March to 13tli October, 1637, at $3,000 - - - ^\fi2o 
Due to P. R. K. Piay, lor his services as commissioner, from 7th 

April to 13th October, 1837, at $3,000 1,550 

Due to James Murray, for his services as commissioner, from lOtli 

April to 13(h October, 1837, at $3,000 - - - - - 1,525 
Due to Jonathan Jt'inkney, for his services as secreta^^', from 22d 

June to 13ih October, 1837, at $1,500 --'--- 459 
Advanced to the commissioners on account of contingent expenses 1,500 



Total - - $6,659 



Note. — No accounts tiave been rendered by the commissioners for set- 
tlement. 

Office of Indian Affairs, 

December 14, 1837- 



















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